Looking Back

From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History 

accessible at www.djnfoundation.org

W

e are in the midst 
of a great sum-
mer for Jewish 
sportsmen and sportswom-
en. The Maccabiah Games 
for Israeli and 
Jewish athletes 
from around the 
world were held 
in Jerusalem, 
July 14-27. The 
Maccabi Games 
for young Jewish 
athletes follows 
and will be held July 31-Aug. 
5 in San Diego.
By the way, the name for 
both sets of games is derived 
from that of the ancient Jewish 
warrior, Judah Maccabee. 
First held in 1932, this year 
marks the 21st Maccabiah 
Games in Israel. Known as the 
“Jewish Olympics,” the games 
are held every four years and 
are considered the second larg-
est sports event in the world 
in respect to the number of 
participants. An estimated 
10,000 athletes from 60 differ-

ent nations participated in the 
2022 Maccabiah Games.
This year’s games were also 
special for another reason. 
For the first time in history, 
a U.S. President — Joe Biden 
— attended the games. Biden 
did so with the current Prime 
Minister of Israel Yair Lapid 
and Israeli President Isaac 
Herzog. This was a very posi-
tive moment for Israel as well 
as global Jewish communities.
Not to be confused with the 
Maccabiah Games in Israel, the 
Maccabi Games is the largest 
sports event in North America 
for young Jewish athletes 
mainly from around the U.S. 
and Canada (founded in 1982).
Detroit has hosted the games 
several times, most recently in 
2019, which was the last time 
the Maccabi Games were held. 
For a list of this year’s partic-
ipants from Detroit, see Steve 
Stein’s article in the March 14, 
2022, JN.
Indeed, research into the 
William Davidson Digital 

Archive of Jewish Detroit 
History soon reveals that 
many Detroiters have excelled 
in both the Maccabiah and 
Maccabi Games over the 
years. I found many inter-
esting reports; 528 pages cite 
the Maccabiah Games, and 
1,116 pages cite the Maccabi 
Games. That’s a lot of stories 
about a lot of fine athletes. In 
fact, too many to name in this 
“Looking Back.” 
Metro Jewish Detroiters 
seem to have excelled in tennis, 
to name just one sport. See 
the story on Esther Frank in 
the March 3, 1993, JN. Norm 
Pappas and Susie Jacob made 
the U.S. masters tennis team 
for the 1997 Maccabiah Games 
(March 28, 1997). Pappas came 
home with silver and bronze 
medals. Leonard Brose won 
silver medals in singles and 
doubles in the 1985 games. 
A superior athlete, Brose was 
inducted into the Michigan 
Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 
1988 (April 15, 1988).

And there are the coaches 
and leaders. For example, 
Karen Sklar Gordon was 
director of the JCC Maccabi 
Games in 2008 and chair of 
the 2014 games, both held in 
Detroit. In 1989, as an ath-
lete, Gordon was a finalist for 
the women’s basketball team. 
In 2018, however, Gordon 
coached the team!
Detroiters were at this year’s 
Maccabiah Games. J.J. Modell 
participated in the men’s mas-
ters division for golf, and Ryan 
Berke played hockey for the 
U.S. team (March 3, 2022).
In conclusion, let me say 
that Detroit’s Jewish commu-
nity has been and continues 
to be well represented in the 
most important Jewish games 
in the world. The proof is in 
the Davidson Archive, and the 
stories about Detroit’s best are 
very good reading. 

Want to learn more? Go to the DJN 
Foundation archives, available for 
free at www.djnfoundation.org.

Mike Smith
Alene and 
Graham Landau 
Archivist Chair

62 | JULY 28 • 2022 

Here’s to Our Athletes

